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The world’s first personal computer was the MITS Altair 8800.
The law of leadership would suggest that the MITS Altair 8800 (an unfortunate choice of names) ought
to be the No. 1 personal computer brand. Unfortunately, the product is no longer with us.
Du Mont invented the first commercial television set. Duryea introduced the first automobile. Hurley
introduced the first washing machine. All are gone.
Is something wrong with the law of leadership in chapter 1? No, but the law of the mind modifies it. It’s
better to be first in the prospect’s mind than first in the marketplace. Which, if anything, understates the
importance of being first in the mind. Being first in the mind is everything in marketing. Being first in
the marketplace is important only to the extent that it allows you to get in the mind first.
For example, IBM wasn’t first in the marketplace with the mainframe computer. Remington Rand was
first, with UNIVAC. But thanks to a massive marketing effort, IBM got into the mind first and won the
computer battle early.
The law of the mind follows from the law of perception. If marketing is a battle of perception, not
product, then the mind takes precedence over the marketplace.
Thousands of would-be entrepreneurs are tripped up every year by this law. Someone has an idea or
concept he or she believes will revolutionize an industry, as well it may. The problem is getting the idea
or concept into the prospect’s mind.
The conventional solution to the problem is money. That is, the resources to design and build product or
service organizations plus the resources to hold press conferences, attend trade shows, run
advertisements, and conduct direct mail programs (chapter 22: The Law of Resources).
Unfortunately, this gives rise to the perception that the answer to all marketing questions is the same:
money. Not true. More money is wasted in marketing than in any other human activity (outside of
government activities, of course).
You can’t change a mind once a mind is made up. It’s like going head-to-head against an entrenched
enemy, the charge of the Light Brigade at Balaclava being history’s most famous example, closely
followed by Pickett’s fiasco at Gettysburg.
Wang was first in word processors. But the world passed such machines by and went on to computers.
Wang, however, wasn’t able to make the transition. In spite of spending millions of dollars promoting its
personal computers and minicomputers, Wang is still perceived as a word processor company.
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Xerox was first in copiers and then tried to get into the computer business. Twenty-five years and $2
billion later, Xerox is nowhere in computers.
You want to change something in a computer? Just type over or delete the existing material. You want to
change something in a mind? Forget it. Once a mind is made up, it rarely, if ever, changes. The single
most wasteful thing you can do in marketing is try to change a mind.
“If you want to make a big impression on another person, you cannot worm your way into their mind
and then slowly build up a favorable opinion over a period of time. The mind doesn’t work that way.
You have to blast your way into the mind.
The reason you blast instead of worm is that people don’t like to change their minds. Once they perceive
you one way, that’s it. They kind of file you away in their minds as a certain kind of person. You cannot
become a different person in their minds.
One of the mysteries of marketing is the role of money. One day a few dollars can work a major miracle.
The next day millions of dollars can’t save a company from going under. When you have an open mind
to work with, even a small amount of money can go a long way. Apple got off the computer ground with
$91,000 contributed by Mike Markkula.
Apple’s problem in getting into its prospects’ minds was helped by its simple, easy-to-remember name.
On the other hand, Apple’s competitors had complicated names that were difficult to remember. In the
early days, five personal computers were in position on the launching pad: Apple II, Commodore Pet,
IMSAI 8080, MITS Altair 8800, and Radio Shack TRS-80. Ask yourself, which name is the simplest
and easiest to remember?
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